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Connecticut  bulletin  45 


i\3  N  I  VERS  IT  V. 
\  or*        K  ^ 


EDUCATIONAL  INQUIRY 
East    Windsor 

May   1916 


Co-r^•rvC.c."V;cot^     '^o'^'r6,    o^    <^Aoc-a.irv  (i->o 


0 "    •>    ■>     t  n 


The_State_Board_of  Education 
Hartford  Connecticut 


V 


Members 

of  the 

State  Board  of  Education 

1917 


Marcus   H  Holcomb     Governor 

Clifford  B  Wilson    Lieut-Governor 

Schuyler  Merritt     . 

Edward  D  Robbins    . 

Charles  F  Smith 

Howell   Cheney 

Dr  John  G  Stanton 


Southington 
Bridgeport 
Stamford 
New  Haven 
New  Britain 
South  Manchester 
New  London 


{ 


office  r  , 
;  V;  'J^oohi  J4?,  ;Cai5^1J0,l/  Hartford 


March    1917 


1     Scantic 

3  >   Closed 
4j 

5  Warehouse  Point 

6  Closed 

7  Melrose 

8  Broad  Brook 


9  Closed 

10  Windsorville 

11  Barber  Hill 


•:i:  ^-^  ^  U  O'O 


•  •  • 
•  •  • 
•     •  •. 


EAST  WINDSOR 

In  May  1916  an  inquiry  into  the  educational  work  of  East 
Windsor  was  conducted  by  Mr  N  S  Light,  agent  of  the  state  board 
of  education,  by  whom  also  this  report  was  written 

On  May  8th  the  following  letter  was  sent  the  chairman  secre- 
tary and  former  acting  visitor  of  the  town  school  committee.  Later 
the  same  letter  was  sent  the  principal  who  was  said  to  be  per- 
forming the  duties  of  acting  visitor 

Hartford 
"        May  8   1916 
Dear  sir 

The  state  board  of  education  is  making  a 
survey  of  educational  conditions  in  the 
several  towns  in  the  state 

In  pursuance  of  this  plan  our  purpose  is  to 
spend  two  or  three  days  in  visiting  the 
schools  of  East  Windsor 

Will  you  kindly  make  any  suggestions 
which  will  assist  us  in  our  work? 

Yours  truly 


From  the  chairman  and  secretary  no  replies  were  received 

A  few  days  later  visitation  of  the  schools  began.  The  inspector 
conferred  once  with  the  chairman  once  with  the  secretary  and 
with  the  acting  visitor  several  times  in  every  instance  urging 
an  immediate  conference  with  the.  town  school  committee  concern- 
ing the  conditions,  found  in  the  schools 

In  every  case  it  was  said  to  be  impossible  to  gather  the  com- 
mittee together  before  the  annual  meeting  in  July 

The  acting  visitor  had  not  then  visited  all  the  schools  and  was 
unfamiliar  with  conditions.  Later  he  agreed  to  report  in  detail  to 
the  school  committee  and  it  is  understood  that  he  did  so 

No  notice  of  the  annual  meeting  or  any  other  meeting  or  con- 
ference was  received  by  the  inspector  during  the  months  of  May 
June  July  and  August  hence  in  September  the  postals  appearing 
below  were  sent  to  the  voters  of  East  Windsor.  Their  purpose 
was  to  arouse  the  community  to  an  inquiry  into  the  work  and  con- 
dition of  its  schools 


The  people  were  entitled  to  the  facts 


PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

State  board  of  education 
Room  42    Capitol    Hartford 

East  Windsor 

"Why  does   East  Windsor  fail   to  provide   its   schools   with   skilled 
supervision? 

Why  does  East  Windsor  pay  more  for  music  instruction  than  for 

instruction  in  reading,  writing  or  arithmetic? 

Why    does    East   Windsor   provide    skilled    supervision    for    music 

but  not  for  the  other  subjects? 

Why  are  the  schools  not  visited  according  to  law? 

Correspondence  is  solicited 

Chas  D  Hine    Secretary 
I  N'Searle  Light     Inspector 

PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

State  board  of  education 

Room  42    Capitol    Hartford 

East  Windsor 
Why  isn't  there  a  definite  and  helpful  course  of  studies? 
Why  are  the  subjects  required  by  law  not  taught? 
Why  isn't  reading  taught  in  every  first  grade? 
Why  is  there  little  good  reading  matter? 
Why  is  the  school  at  Barber  Hill  neglected? 

Correspondence  is  solicited 

Chas  D  Hine     Secretary 
N  Searle  Light    Inspector 

PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

State  board  of  education 

Room  42   Capitol    Hartford 

East  Windsor 

Why   does   East  Windsor  pay   salaries   to   which   the   teachers   are 

not  legally  entitled? 

Why  are  the  teachers  not  examined  according  to  law? 

Why  is  the  average  monthly  wage  to  women  teachers  more  than 

$20  less  than  the  county  average? 

Why  are  the  teachers  not  given  the   benefits   of   skilled   direction 

and  training? 

Is  janitor  work  teaching? 

Correspondence  is  solicited 

Chas  D  Hine     Secretary 
N  Searle  Light    Inspector 


PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

State  board  of  education 
Room  42    Capitol    Hartford 

East  Windsor 

An  East  Windsor  school 

"The  desks  are  of  an  ancient  double  type  showing  the  scars  of 
many  jack-knives.  -The  bench  in  front  long  ago  lost  its  legs  in 
ceaseless  battle  and  now  propped  upon  a  soap  box  and  a  block 
makes  shift  to  continue  in  ser-Wce.  The  top  of  an  old  organ  has 
parted  from  its  under-structure  and  balancing  on  a  box  serves  as 
an  uncertain  and  not  too  useful  table.  The  one  chair  serves  the 
teacher  constantly  but  the  visitor  must  shift  for  himself  and  an 
uncertain  shift  he  has." 

Think  it  over 

Correspondence  is  solicited 

Chas  D  Hine     Secretary 
N  Searle  Light     Inspector 


PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

State  board  of  education 
Room  42    Capitol    Hartford 

East  Windsor 

"In   and   about  the  privies   were   lewd   markings    and    cuttings, 
broken  boards  and  fencing,  leaky  roofs,  filthy  floors  and  seats." 

Why  are  indecent  filthy  privies  tolerated? 

What  is  their  influence  on  the  children? 

Is  a  dirty  school  house  a  thing  to  be  proud  of? 

Why  were  only  the  old  books  burned  after  a   case  of  diphtheria 
in  one   school? 

Why  is  there  no  water  supply  on  most  of  the  school  grounds? 

Why  is  there  no  means  of  teaching  personal  cleanliness? 

Correspondence  is  solicited 

Chas  D  Hine     Secretary 

N  Searle  Light     Inspector 


PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

State  board  of  education 

Room  42   Capitol    Hartford 

East  Windsor 

East  Windsor's  indebtedness  on  September  15  1915  was  $102,- 
803.15.    How  much  of  it  was  for  schools? 

The  town's  expenses  are  increasing.  The  town  debt  has  grown 
$30,000  in  two  years.    Why  has  the  tax  rate  dropped  25%  ? 

A  town  note  for  $70,000  is  due  in  a  few  years,  and  no  provision 
has  been  made  for  meeting  it.    Why? 

East  Windsor  appropriated  for  schools  4.78  per  cent  in  mills  of  its 
taxable  property.  Less  than  Somers,  Suffield,  Windsor  or  South 
Windsor.    Why? 

East  Windsor's  cost  per  child  in  average  attendance  was  less  than 
that  of  either  South  Windsor,  Suffield,  Windsor  Locks,  Windsor, 
Ellington  or  Somers.    Why? 

Think  it  over 

Correspondence  is  solicited 

Chas  D  Hine    Secretary 
N  Searle  Light    Inspector 


PUBLIC  SCHOOLS 

State  board  of  education 
Room  42    Capitol   Hartford 

East  Windsor 

In  the  eight  years  from  1908  to  1915  road  payments  quintupled 
doubling  in  the  last  four  years.  The  school  expense  doubled  only 
The  rate  of  increase  in  payments  for  roads  has  been  nearly  five 
times  as  large  as  for  schools 

Plans  for  modernizing  the  roads  and  bridges  have  been  made. 

Are  there  such  plans  for  the  schools? 

East  Windsor's  grand  list  in  five  years  has  grown  68%.  Have 
East  Windsor's  payments  for  schools  kept  pace?    Why  not? 

Think  it  over 

Correspondence  is  solicited 

Chas  D  Hine    Secretary 
N  Searle  Light    Inspector 

6 


Responses  both  favorable  and  unfavorable  came  from  these 
cards.  The  one  clear  inference  to  be  drawn  was  that  neither  the 
committee  nor  the  people  were  aware  of  the  nature  of  the  work 
done  in  the  schools  nor  of  the  condition  of  the  school  plant  and 
equipment 

This  report  in  a  tentative  form  was  mailed  to  the  members  of 
the  school  committee  on  September  16th.  A  welcome  was  assured 
to  any  suggestions  or  corrections  and  an  offer  to  confer  with  the 
committee  was  again  extended 

Further  requests  for  conferences  with  the  school  committee 
were  made  in  September  and  October.  At  this  writing  March 
1917  no  conferences  have  been  held  except  with  the  acting  school 
visitor  and  with  individual  members  of  the  committee 

Public  meetings  to  consider  ^school  matters  have  been  suggested 
to  the  committee  without  result 

Changes  in  the  personnel,  of  the  committee  have  occurred  during 
the  spring  summer  and  fall  and  more  activity  has  been  apparent 

Opportunity  was  afforded  the  acting  school  visitor  to  prepare 
for  printing  with  this  report  a  statement  of  the  accomplishment 
and  plans  of  the  committee.  This  has  not  been  forthcoming  and 
therefore  the  following  paragraphs  are  included 

1  Committee  meetings  are  now  held  once  a  month 

2  Teachers'  meetings  are  being  held  part  of  which  are  addressed 
by  speakers  from  the  outside  and  part  by  the  local  principals. 
Members  of  the  committee  are  attending  these  meetings 

3  More  supplementary  reading  has  been  purchased  and  two 
changes  in  textbooks  have  been  made.  Steps  toward  an  eight  grade 
system  have  been  taken.  Extensive  repairs  and  improvements  in 
equipment  have  been  made  in  at  least  one  district.  Sewing  ma- 
chines and  telephones  have  been  placed  in  the  two  center  schools 

4  Different  courses  of  study  are  still  tolerated  in  the  different 
parts  of  the  town 

5  Abominable  privy  conditions  have  not  been  remedied 

6  Little  has  been  done  to  secure  to  the  children  in  the  one- 
teacher  schools  the  training  rightfully  their  due 

SELECTIONS   RFOM   REPLIES    TO    POSTALS 

"As  a  citizen  of  East  Windsor  I  am  ashamed  of  this  condition  of 
things" 

"Because  they  need  waking  up  all  along  the.  line  and  have  for 
years.  If  more  attention  were  paid  to  the  "3  R's"  they  might  turn 
out  a  better  finished  product." 

"1  cannot,  however,  look  upon  the  cards  which  you  have  sent 
into  this  town  other  than  as  a  direct  insult  to  the  present  mem- 
bers of  the  School  Board  and  a  reflection  upon  the  intelligence  of 
the  citizens  of  this  Town.  I  think  that  had  you  fully  looked  into 
the  situation  here  you  would  not  have  gone  off  half  cocked  as  you 
have  done  in  the  present  instance." 


ACTING    SCHOOL    VISITOR 

The  correspondence  with  the  chairman  of  the  town  school  com- 
mittee concerning  the  acting  school  visitor  is  printed  below.  The 
date  of  the  secretary's  statement  should  be  noted  as  well  as  the 
fact  that  he  omits  the  date  when  the  appointment  was  confirmed 

Hartford  , 
May  11    1916 
To  the 

Reverend  W  H  Brewster 
Warehouse  Point 
Reverend  and  dear  sir 

There  seems  to  be  some  uncertainty  as  to 
the  legal  status  of  Mr  Mandrey  as  visitor  for 
the  school  committee 

Has  the  appointment  been  formally  acted 
upon  by  the  town  school  committee? 

I  note  that  the  Barber  Hill  school  has  not 
been  ofificially  visited  this  year 

Yours  very  truly 

N  Searle  Light 

Hartford 
July  15    1916 
To  the 

Reverend  W  H  Brewster 
Warehouse  Point 
Reverend  and  dear  sir 

I  cannot  find  a  reply  to  the  letter  a  copy  of 
which  is  enclosed 

Will  you  kindly  write  us  by  return  mail? 

Yours  very  truly 

N  Searle  Light 

Dear  Mr  Light 

I  did  not  read  your  letter  as  requiring  an 
answer.  At  that  time  Mr  Mandrey's  visiting 
of  the  schools  was  on  trial.  The  annual 
meeting  of  the  School  Board  must  have  been 
held  or  to  be  in  the  near  future 

*       *       5)C       *       *       *       * 

Yours  truly 

Wm  J  Brewster 
Litchfield    Conn 
July  18   1916 

8 


Mr  N  S  Light 
Hartford    Conn 
Dear  sir 


Broad  Brook    Conn 
July  18    1916 


In  answer  to  your  inquiry  of  May  11th  to 
Rev  W  J  Brewster  would  say  that  Mr 
Mandrey  was  elected  by  the  full  Board  of 
Education  for  the  Town  of  East  Windsor  to 
fill  Dr  Wm  F  English's  unexpired  term  as 
school  supervisor  which  term  he  has  filled  to 
the  best  of  his  ability 

Very  Truly  yours 

H  O  Allen 


Chas  D  Hine     Secretary 
N  Searle  Light     Inspector 


CHAPTER   1 


Settlement — early  school  records — reports  of  visitors — school  societies — 
district  system — town  control — private  schools — ■■  Theological  Insti- 
tute of  Connecticut — high  school — supervision 

East  Windsor  as  part  of  the  original  town  of  Windsor  was 
among  the  earliest  settlements  in  Connecticut.  Nearly  simultan- 
eous with  settlements  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Connecticut  began 
those  on  the  east  but  the  early  history  of  the  latter  is  not  clear 

The  first  reference  in  the  records  to  a  school  on  the  east  bank 
is  in  April    1698    when  Windsor  voted 

"agreed  to  hire  a  schoolmaster — 3  months  on  the  east  side, 

4V2   months   on  the   west   side   north   of   the  rivulet   and   iVz 
months  south  of  the  rivulet" 

Each  quarter  of  the  town  was  to  provide  a  suitable  school  house 
without  charge  to  the  town.  The  master  received  20  pounds  'be- 
sides that  which  is  given  of  gift  money* 

A  committee,  Lieut  Hayden  and  Matthew  Allen,  were  appointed 
to  employ  the  schoolmaster.  '  Their  contract  with  Mr  Samuel  Wol- 
cott  dated  April    1698   appears  below 

"Agreed  with  Mr  Samuel  Wolcott  to  keep  a  reading,  and 
writing,  and  cyphering,  and  grammar  school  for  one  full 
year,  to  begin  on  the  twelfth  day  or  this  month  (July) ; 
to  take  none  but  such  as  are  entered  in  spelling.  His  salary 
is  to  be  thirty-five  pounds  in  country  pay  or  two-thirds  of 
so  much  in  money.  The  school  is  to  be  kept  at  the  several 
places  agreed  on  by  the  townsmen 


Daniel  Hayden 
Matthew  Allvn 


selectmen 


Samuel  Wolcott 


The  next  reference  to  the  schools  on  the  east  side  is  in  the 
records  of  the  east  society  under  date  of  Dec  15  1702   when  it  was 

"voted  also  that  there  shall  be  a  school  and  divided  as  it 
was  last  year;  voted  also  that  the  committee  chosen  shall 
provide  a  man  to  keep  school." 

From  this  it  may  be  inferred  that  the  society  assmned  control  of 
these  schools  in  1701  or  earlier.  This  control  the  society  did  not 
relinquish  until  many  years  later  under  statutory  compulsion.  In 
1702  James  Younglove  began  to  keep  school 

An  interesting  item  appears  in  1708  in  the  payment  to  John 
Stoughton  1  s  8  d  for  teaching  school  one  day 

In  1717  a  committee  was  appointed  to  hire  the  teachers  and  an- 
other to  act  as  visitors  to  see  to  the  well-ordering  of  the  school 

The  town  frequently  added  to  the  amount  received  from  the 
county  for  the  support  of  its  schools.  Its  custom  was  to  employ 
masters  in  the  winter  and  dames  in  the  summer  and  for  many 
years  school  was  kept  somewhere  the  whole  year.  The  number  of 
places  where  school  was  kept  steadily  increased  from  two  in  1718  to 
three  in  1721  and  six  in  1724.  In  1781  the  town  was  re-districted 
and  the  number  made  six.  Twelve  years  later  Warehouse  Point 
became  a  separate  district 

The  ministers  trained  young  men  for  the  ministry  in  their  own 
families.  The  ministers  as  executives  of  the  ecclesiastical  so- 
cieties which  controlled  the  schools  visited  the  schools  regularly 
until  about  1830  and  individual  ministers  have  continued  to  act  as 
agents  of  the  town  and  as  school  visitors  intermittently  to  the 
present  day 

In  1741  a  committee  of  three  was 

"chosen   to  take   care   of  the   money   given   for  the   several 

towns  lately  laid  out  in  the  western  land,  to  be  disposed  of,. 

and   improved   for  the   support   of   schooling   in   the   several 

towns  and  parishes  of  the  Colony,  as  mentioned  in  the  Act 

passed  in  May,  Anno  Dom,  1741,  by  the  General  Court,  or 

Assembly." 

The  fund  received  in  1742  amounted  to  eighty-four  pounds  five 

shilling  nine  pence.      The  school  fund  in  1890  amounted  to  $889.99 

and  it  so  remains  today 

From  the  records  of  the  society  it  appears  that  commonly  a 
committee  of  12  collected  the  funds' and  supervised  the  schools. 
The  last  entry  on  the  ecclesiastical  records  having  to  do  with  the 
common  schools  was  in  1798  and  had  to  do  with  the  appointment 
of  such  a  committee.  In  that  year  the  law  went  into  effect  which 
completed  the  work  begun  in  1795  in  creating  a  school  society 
separate  and  distinct  from  the  ecclesiastical  society.  Each  society 
was  empowered  to  appoint  a  committee  of  persons  not  to  exceed 
nine  of  competent  skill  and  letters  to  be  overseers  or  school 
visitors 

There  is  little  information  concerning  the  schools'  work  for 
the  next  forty  years  but  we  have  no  reason  to  suppose  it  better 
than  in  the  neighboring  or  other  towns  of  the  state.  It  was  a 
period  of  little  advance  in  most  respects.     The  number  of  govern- 

10 


ing  authorities  increased  steadily  while  the  amount  of  state  aid 
increased  and  local  financial  support  dwindled  in  many  cases  to 
naught 

In  1841  the  report  of  the  school  visitors  noted 

1  a  general  lack  of  parental  or  public  interest 

2  that  the  school  houses  were  "bad,"  "all  things  considered" 

Under  the  last  heading  the  visitor  said  their  "location,  size  and 
internal  arrangements  for  ventilation,  temperature,  seats  and 
desks  are  not  what  they  should  be."  There  were  no  wood  sheds. 
Two  were  without  privies.  One  privy  was  directly  across  the 
road  from  the  school  and  was  without  a  door,  the  interior  being 
exposed  to  the  view  of  passers-by.  All  schools  were  dependent 
upon  their  neighbors  for  their  water  supply 

The  acting  visitor  stated  that  "no  one  thing  would  conduce  more 
to  the  improvement  of  schools  than  the  appointment  of  a  county 
examiner"  for^  teachers  to  eliminate  the  unfit.  "Children  are 
generally  deficient  in  the  primary  branches,"  summarized  the  edu- 
cational work  in  the  mind  of  the  visitor 

This  report  was  made  to  the  state  board  of  education  and  was 
later  published  in  the  Connecticut  common  school  journal.  To 
most  of  its  points  we  shall  refer  later 

In  1856  the  act  abolishing  school  societies  effected  the  elimina- 
tion of  the  East  Windsor  societies  but  the  district  system  re- 
mained until  1895  when  the  town  again  assumed  control  of  all  the 
schools 

The  academy  on  East  Windsor  Hill  now  a  part  of  South  Wind- 
sor vyas  erected  by  private  means  about  1800.  It  continued  a  use- 
ful life  until  the  building  of  the  Theological  Institute  which  grad- 
ually absorbed  it 

This  academy  erected  about  two  years  after  the  incorporation  of 
the  Hartford  grammar  school  was  of  the  earliest  group  in  Con- 
necticut. Among  its  teachers,  generally  young  men  from  Yale, 
were 

J  H  Brockway,  Yale  1820,  lawyer  and  representative  to  the 
United  States  congress 

Judge  William  Strong  of  the  United  States  supreme  court 

General  Nathan  Johnson  of  Hartford 

The  boys  were  prepared  for  college  and  quite  a  number  of  girls 
went  to  finishing  schools  in  Hartford.  East  Windsor  in  part  at 
least  was  early  interested  in  educating  its  young  women  beyond 
the  elementary  schools  but  not  at  town  expense 

In  a  diary  under  date  of  April  24  1811  appears  the  following 
note  of  an  exhibition  at  the  East  Windsor  Hill  academy 

"The  Academy  here  had  an  exhibition.  It  began  about 
eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  and  continued  until  two  in  the 
morning.  I  did  not  attend.  It  is  said  to  have  been  a  very 
good  one." 

11 


What  sort  of  exhibition  this  was  is  not  known  but  assuredly 
there  was  genuine  popular  interest  in  the  school 

In  1817  a  two-story  brick  building  was  built  by  private  enter- 
prise for  an  academy  at  Scantic.  It  was  not  the  equal  of  the 
other  academy  but  was  useful  for  many  years.  The  building  is 
standing  and  in  use,  the  lower  part  by  the  upper  grades  of  the  dis- 
trict school  and  the  upper  until  recently  by  the  grange 

A  school  of  art  and  design  flourished  for  some  years  in  what 
is  now  South  Windsor  and  Deacon  Reed's  apprentices  were  active 
in  bank  note  engraving  later 

In  1833  "The  Pastoral  Union  of  Connecticut"  was  organized  at 
a  convention  in  East  Windsor.  The  Union  had  for  its  purpose 
the  defeat  of  the  theology  advocated  by  the  Yale  college  theology 
department.  It  established  the  Theological  Institute  of  Connecti- 
cut and  located  the  Institute  at  East  Windsor  Hill  where  the 
buildings  stand  today,  evidence  of  the  ill  judgment  displayed  in 
their  isolated  location.  The  Institute  struggled  along  until  1865 
with  never  more  than  34  students.  An  offer  of  amalgamation  from 
Yale  college  was  refused  and  the  Institute  removed  to  Hartford 
where  it  has  prospered 

East  Windsor  immediately  took  advantage  of  the  state  law- 
passed  in  1897  which  permitted  local  school  committees  in  towns 
not  supporting  a  high  school  to  pay  the  tuition  of  its  pupils  at- 
tending high  schools  in  other  towns  and  to  receive  a  partial  refund 
of  such  payments  from  the  state.  Similarly  after  the  passage  of 
an  act  in  1903  permitting  payment  of  transportation  charges  of 
high  school  pupils  with  a  refund  from  the  state  the  town  began 
these  payments.  Its  pupils  today  attend  high  schools  in  five  neigh- 
boring towns   with   the    approval   of  the   town    school   committee. 

Their  distribution  is 

Vernon  29 

Enfield  11 

Hartford  1 

East  Hartford  1 

Windsor   Locks  22 

total        64 

Free  textbooks  and  supplies  have  been  furnished  since  1898 
twelve  years  after  authorization  by  law 

In"  the  case  of  supervision  the  town  has  not  kept  pace  with  the 
law.  In  1856  an  act  was  passed  permitting  the  appointment  by 
the  school  committee  of  one  of  their  number  as  acting  visitor.  Un- 
der this  law  East  Windsor  has  supervised  its  schools  until  the  win- 
ter term  of  last  year  when  the  resignation  of  the  acting  visitor 
found  no  member  of  the  committee  in  a  position  to  take  over  the 
work,  A  local  principal  was  requested  by  the  chairman  without 
committee  action  to  perform  the  duties  of  acting  visitor  under  the 
supervision  law  of  1903.  This  appointment  was  not  officially  con- 
firmed until  July  after  school  closed 

12 


The  town  has  not  employed  a  skilled  superintendent  under  the 
law  of  1909 

The  town  in  general  has  progressed  educationally  as  the  laws 
required.  No  great  voluntary  effort  is  apparent  except  in  the  ac- 
tivities of  groups  of  private  citizens 

CHAPTER  ii 

Location — topography — roads — rail    connections — industries — population 

— school  population 

Ea:st  Windsor  is  on  the  east  side  of  fhe  Connecticut  river  a  few 
miles  above  Hartford.  It  includes*'the  Saltonstall  Park  grant  and 
now  adjoins  Enfield  on  the  north,  Ellington  on  the  east  and  South 
Windsor  on  the  south.  Most  of  the  land  is  level  and  the  few  hills 
are  small.  It  is  traversed  by  several  brooks,  one  of  which  sup- 
plies power  to  the  mills  at  Broad  Brook.  The  rich  and  fertile 
soil  grows  superior  crops  of  leaf  tobacco,  the  chief  industry.  With 
the  high  prices  of  recent  years  the  growers  have  prospered  as 
never  before  and  this  prosperity  evidenced  by  the  large  acreage 
under  cultivation,  the  care  and  condition  of  the  land  buildings 
the  fences  impresses  the  traveler  strongly.  With  the  growth  of 
insurance  and  improved  means  of  curing,  many  of  the  risks  neces- 
sarily attending  tobacco  culture  have  been  greatly  reduced 

The  roads  are  above  the  average.  The  state  trunk  line  from 
East  Hartford  to  Springfield  runs  though  the  western  end  and  an 
excellent  road  through  Scantic  and  Broad  Brook  leads  to  Elling- 
ton and  Rockville.  The  trunk  line  to  Springfield  is  paralleled  by  a 
trolley  line  with  a  branch  from  Warehouse  Point  east  to  Broad 
Brook  Melrose  Ellington  and  Rockville.  Through  the  eastern 
part  runs  the  Hartford  Melrose  and  Springfield  railroad  with  a 
branch  to  Rockville.  Across  the  bridge  over  the  Connecticut  the 
Springfield  and  New  York  railroad  line  is  reached  at  Windsor 
Locks.  The  trolleys  carry  express  and  on  the  north  and  south 
and  the  Melrose  to  Rockville  lines  freight  cars  are  handled. 
While  the  trolley  lines  are  not  paying  and  are  not  giving  good 
service,  on  the  whole  the  town  does  not  suffer  from  insufficient 
means  of  travel  or  shipment 

The  telephone  service  connecting  with  telegraph  stations  is  ex- 
cellent and  the  postal  and  express  facilities  are  good 

The  chief  industry  is  tobacco  culture  with  a  few  warehouses  for 
sorting  scattered  about.  The  distilleries  have  declined  in  number 
and  volume  of  business  since  the  days  when  the  town  led  the 
nation  in  gin  manufacture.  Woolen  and  silk  goods  factories  are 
successful 

The  past  has  seen  a  large  ship  building  and  transfer  business 
along  the  river.  One  writer  describes  twenty  sloops  anchored  off 
the  Point  waiting  a  favorable  wind  to  go  down  the  river.  With 
the  opening  of  the  railroad  and  canal  the  transfer  and  shipping 
importance  of  the  Point  dwindled  rapidly 

The  future  lies  in  the  development  of  agriculture  upon  a  broader 
and  more  secure  basis.  ^  In  this  work  the  schools  can  have  a  large 
influence  if  properly  directed 

13 


The  population  of  about  3500  is  slowly  and  steadily  increasing 
but  is  pretty  well  scattered  with  small  centers  at  Warehouse  Point 
and  Broad  Brook.  Along  the  Springfield  and  Hartford  trolley 
residences  are  strung  along  quite  evenly 

This  division  of  the  town  into  two  centers  controlling  each  its 
section  has  seriously  hindered  the  town's  development  in  many 
ways.  Friction  and  strife  exist  in  some  form  always.  Sectional 
jealousies  have  prevented  the  selection  of  the  best  man  for  the  job 
too  frequently.  Each  watches  the  other  closely  to  prevent  any 
move  to  the  advantage  of  the  one  without  a  compensating  ad- 
vantage to  the  other.  The  'people  have  no  ''town  mind"  as  it  were. 
They  seldom  think  or  act  as  a  unit 

The  school  population  is  little  affected  by  seasonal  fluctuations. 
The  influx  of  tobacco  laborers  at  certain  seasons  seldom  brings 
more  children  although  the  permanent  demand  for  such  help  has 
brought  in  many  Polish  with  large  families  of  children.  But  this 
growth  has  not  kept  pace  with  the  rapidly  growing  grand  list 

Of  foreign  born  whites  there  were  762  in  1910  while  of  native 
whites  of  foreign  or  mixed  parentage  the  census  reported  1211. 
The  last  item  is  nearly  equal  to  the  item  native  whites  of  native 
parents  1369.  There  were  1001  males  of  voting  age  and'of  these  60 
were  unable  to  read  English.  Nearly  half  of  the  foreign-born 
have  been  naturalized,  165  out  of  358.  One  hundred  and  fifty  is  a 
fair  estimate  of  the  number  of  residents  over  school  age  who  are 
unable  to  read  English.  What  and  how  to  do  for  them  is  worth 
consideration  by  the  educational  authorities  of  the  town  although 
an  adequate  training  for  the  children  is  the  best  provision  possible 
for  their  Americanization 

The  enumeration  of  the  school  population  shows  steady  in- 
creases since  1910.  In  the  last  five  years  the  actual  increase  has 
been  larger  than  that  of  the  preceding  decade.  The  number  of 
children  of  school  age  is  rising  with  increasing  rapidity  undoubt- 
edly due  to  the  successful  growth  of  the  agricultural  industry 

This  has  significance  in  planning  increases  of  school  plant  and 
equipment.  A  building  meeting  the  needs  of  the  present  will  not 
with  the  present  rate  of  growth  meet  the  needs  of  five  years  hence. 
The  town  should  avoid  this  common  error  of  providing  space  in- 
adequate for  growth 

The  actual  registration  and  average  attendance  reflect  this 
growth  quite  accurately.  With  closer  supervision  the  attendance 
can  be  greatly  improved.  Cases  were  found  of  children  resident 
in  East  Windsor  several  years  and  well  within  the  compulsory  age 
limits  who  had  never  attended  school  before  the  current  year. 
Such  cases  should  be  impossible.  The  law  makes  it  the  business 
of  the  town  school  committee  to  enforce  attendance.  This  duty  of 
the  committees  does  not  appear  to  have  been  performed 

The  registration  at  Broad  Brook  has  exceeded  the  number  which 
can  be  handled  to  best  advantage  in  this  building  and  the  need  of 
enlargement  is  immediate.  It  should  provide  for  the  children  in 
the  near  by  one-room  schools  at  Melrose  Windsorville  and  Barber 
Hill 

14 


The  number  of  retarded  children  is  far  above  the  common  per 
cent  and  the  number  of  those  accelerated  is  below  the  common 
per  cent.  By  retarded  and  accelerated  are  meant  those  who  are 
behind  or  ahead  of  the  normal  grade  for  their  age.  Less  than  50 
children  remain  in  the  grades  after  reaching  14  years.  This  in- 
dicates a  rapid  loss  and  a  failure  to  hold  children  in  school  after 
they  have  once  reached  the  legal  age  for  employment.  Failure  to 
hold  such  children  is  generally  due  either  to  retarded  progress 
with  ensuing  lack  of  interest  or  to  unmet  needs  in  the  schools 

CHAPTER  iii 

Educational  Resources 

Located  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Connecticut  river  between 
Springfield  and  Hartford  East  Windsor  enjoys  access  to  the  edu- 
cational resources  of  both.  These  include  a  variety  of  special 
schools   museums   libraries  and  recreational  activities 

A  high  school  is  readily  accessible  from  most  every  section  of 
the  town  as  attendance  at  so  many  different  schools  described  else- 
where attests.  The  boys  and  girls  can  without  great  effort  reach 
the  state  trade  education  shop  at  South  Manchester.  A  few  girls 
attend  the  state  normal  school  at  New  Britain 

East  Windsor  has  within  its  borders  two  libraries,  one  at  the 
Point  and  the  other  at  Scantic.  The  first  is  much  alive  and  its' 
librarian  is  serving  the  community  as  far  as  it  will  permit  her. 
This  library  is  making  a  particular  effort  to  reach  the  children  of 
the  Point  school 

This  library  established  in  1875  adopted  the  state  grant  in  1909 
and  has  since  that  time  been  a  free  library 

It  has  only  about  2000  books  but  is  growing  quite  rapidly.  In 
1914  there  were  317  book-takers  representing  200  families  among 
whom  there  were  4677  book-circulations 

The  books  have  been  well  chosen  and  have  been  partially  classi- 
fied and  catalogued 

The  unfortunate  location  over  a  store  is  somewhat  off-set  by  the 
well  appointed  and  decorated  room  and  by  the  fact  the  library  has 
no  rent  to  pay 

This  library  has  been  open  once  in  two  weeks  at  a  time  con- 
venient for  the  children  who  are  transported  on  the  trolley.  A 
story  hour  has  not  been  successful 

This  library  has  an  income  of  nearly  $400  derived  from  a  town 
tax,  income  from  invested  funds  and  from  fines.  It  expends  $60 
for  salaries;  nearly  $150  for  books;  nearly  $30  for  periodicals  and 
for  other  unclassified  items  more  than  $150 

The  Scantic  library  organized  in  1849  twenty-six  years  before 
the  library  at  the  Point,  was  classified  and  catalogued  at  a  much 
earlier  date  although  it  did  not  become  free  and  did  not  adopt 
the  state  grant  until  1909 

15 


This  library  has  over  3000  volumes  and  is  growing  nearly  as  fast 
as  the  other  library.  The  circulation  figures  are  available  and 
show 

non-fiction  400 

fiction  3450 

childrens'  875 

total        4725 

The  number  of  book-takers  was  300  representing  150  families 

This  library  has  in  the  past  maintained  a  branch  at  Windsor- 
ville  and  hopes  to^  re-establish  this  service  in  the  near  future. 
Books  have  been  supplied  to  some  of  the  schools  but  in  no  satis- 
factory amounts.  A  particular  effort  has  been  made  to  assist  the 
high  school  pupils  who  have  benefited  largely  through  the  kind- 
ness of  those  in  charge.  The  library  has  been  made  accessible  to 
them  on  their  way  to  and  from  school  and  at  other  times 

This  library's  cash  income  is  derived  from  the  town  tax  and  fines. 
The  state  aids  with  $100  worth  of  books  and  the  library's  cash  ex- 
penditures are  largely  for  books.  The  local  social  and  literary 
circle  has  been  an  active  agent  in  supporting  and  using  the  library. 
It  has  been  closely  associated  with  the  local  church 

Grange  number  94  has  had  a  very  useful  career  of  25  years.  It 
has  provided  lectures  and  discussions  for  the  public  and  was 
largely  instrumental  in  beginning  the  movements  for  free  text- 
books and  consolidation  of  school  buildings 

Ellington  grange  number  46  has  a  number  of  members  in  Wind- 
sorville  and  Enfield  grange  number  151  draws  a  few  from  Ware- 
house Point 

There  are  also  two  Masonic  lodges  and  several  other  fraternal 
orders 

East  Windsor's  educational  resources  including' its  churches  and 
schools  are  unusually  large  although  none  has  been  developed  to 
its  largest  usefulness 

CHAPTER  iv 
Financial   resources — state    aids — expenditures — comparison   with    neigh- 
boring towns 

East  Windsor's  grand  list  in  five  years  has  risen  from  $1,904,654 
to  $3,190,501  nearly  68%,  a  remarkable  growth  for  a  community 
largely  agricultural.  Property  is  assessed  now  at  approximately 
full  market  value  ' 

The  state  tax  on  bank  stocks  refunded  $569.47.  The  state  further 
paid  the  town  for 

paupers  $545.48 

R  R  indebtedness  200. 

enumeration  2126.25 

high  school 

tuition  1613.71 

transportation  581.03 

total        $5066.47 
16 


All  but  $200  of  the  town  deposit  fund  is  loaned  to  the  town,  the 
rest  to  individuals.  It  amounts  to  $4721.98  on  which  interest 
amounting  to  $271.31  was  paid  the  town  treasurer.  A  town  school 
fund  of  $889.99  returned  in  interest  $44.70.  Neither  of  the  in- 
comes from  these  funds  appears  credited  to  the  schools 

The  town's  indebtedness  on  September  15  1915  was  $102,803.15 
a  large  sum  and  one  that  has  increased  more  than  $30,000  in  two 
years.  In  the  face  of  increasing  expenses  and  a  rapidly  growing 
debt  the  tax  rate  has  been  reduced  from  16  to  12  mills.  One  town 
note  of  $70,000  is  due  in  a  few  years  and  no  way  of  meeting  it 
has  been  adopted  •, 

The  town  appears  shortsighted  in  its  financial  management.  Its 
officials  are  hampered  by  the  divided  interests  of  the  different  sec- 
tions which  are  so  nearly  equal  in  strength  that  no  general  policy 
can  be  consistently  followed 

Expenditures  were  for 


schools 

$19644.89 

high-ways 

22542.81 

roads  and  bridges 

$11735.78 

brush 

187.40 

macadam 

8465.19 

scraping 

266.48 

street  lights 

1887.96 

sundry  expenses 

6391.56 

care  of  poor 

4954.52 

town  officers 

2341.42 

snow 

45.99 

interest 

4874.55 

total        $60,805.76 

The  care  of  roads  is  credited  with  $696.48  from  the  Hartford  and 
Springfield  street  railway  for  its  share  of  a  bridge  cost 

The  schools  are  credited  with 

enumeration  grant  (gross)  $2126.25 

high  school  tuition  grant  1613.71 

"          '*      transportation  grant  581.03 

interest  town  deposit  fund  271.31 

school      "  44.70 

total        $4637.00 

The  enumeration  grant  is  swollen  by  the  large  number  of  county 
home  children.  The  amount  of  this  grant  received  because  of 
these  children  should  under  the  law  be  turned  over  to  the  county. 
But  the  printed  town  report,  the  report  to  the  state  and  the-  county 
commissioners  report  to  the  comptroller  do  not  record  such  pay- 
ments 

17 


The  sum  of  the  credits  deducted  from  the  total  cost  of  the 
schools  makes  their  net  cost  $15,007.89  or  4.78  per  cent  in  mills  of 
the  taxable  property 


East  Windsor 

4.78 

Windsor 

6.22 

South  Windsor 

6.98 

Somers 

5.12 

Suffield 

5.89 

This  table  shows  East  Windsor  behind  its  neighbors  in  support- 
ing its  schools  generously.  The  other  Windsors  appropriate  a 
much  larger  share  of  their  taxable  property  to  the  support  of  their 
schools.  Either  East  Windsor  spends  its  moneys  so  much  more 
advantageously  than  these  towns  as  to  get  equally  good  or  better 
schools  at  less  cost  or  else  it  is   satisfied  with  lower  standards 

All  the  evidence  points  to  the  latter 

The  town  spent  $20.86  per  pupil  enumerated  and  $35.27  per  pupil 
in  average  attendance 


Paid  per  pu 

pil  in  average  attends 

ince 

South  Windsor 

$56.46 

Suffield 

52.85 

Windsor 

39.51 

Windsor  Locks 

43.02 

Ellington 

38.03 

Somers 

44.60 

East  Windsor's  showing  in  comparison  with  many  of  its  neigh- 
bors is  not  one  of  which  to  be  proud 

The  town  therefore  paid  out  on  its  roads  45%  of  the  total  or 
$6838.44  more  than  on  its  schools.  This  disparity  is  apparent  in 
the  relative  condition  of  the  roads  and  schools.  The  first  are 
maintained  in  good  shape  and  the  needs  of  modern  traffic  are 
being  met  by  modern  roads  and  heavier  bridges.  As  will  appear 
elsewhere  modern  demands  upon  the  schools  are  not  met  nor  are 
there  plans  for  meeting  them 


roads  and 

total  for 

total  for 

bridges 

highways 

schools 

1908 

$  2252.53 

$  6927.42 

$12121.75 

1909 

3313.31 

5424.59 

12757.55 

1910 

2717.14 

5172.37 

14032.62 

1911 

3420.26 

6952.25 

13914.19 

1912 

6657.50 

9505.03 

14936.88 

1913 

5551.92 

11300.72 

15806.16 

1914 

9290.44 

16862.16 

36827.79 

1915 

11735.78 

22542.81 

19644.89 

It  appears  that  the  cost  of  roads  and  bridges  has  nearly  quin- 
tupled since  1908  although  the  total  payments  for  highways  have 
only  a  little  more  than  trebled.  The  total  payments  for  schools 
have  increased  about  65%  but  the  next  payments  for  schools  have 
doubled.  The  year  1914  included  a  considerable  capital  outlay 
for  enlarging  the  Warehouse  Point  building 

18 


Since  1910  the  total  payments  for  highways  have  quadrupled 
while  payments  for  schools  have  only  increased  about  one-third 

The  tendency  to  greatly  increase  road  payments  coupled  with 
the  much  slower  school  increase  is  alarming  and  doubly  so  in 
view  of  the  school  conditions  portrayed  elsewhere  in  this  report 

Further  the  roads  have  little  increased  in  mileage  if  they  have 
not  actually  decreased  but  the  schools  have  increased  25%  in  reg- 
istration.    Apparently  the  schools  are  losing  out 

School  expenditures 


general  control                    ••• 

$    120. 

instruction 

12319.77 

stationery 

$  463.98 

tuition 

2546.06 

textbooks 

513.23 

teachers'  wages 

8796.50 

operation  of  school  plant 

1782.13 

fuel   water    lights 

1118.53 

wages   janitors 

663.60 

maintenance  of  plant 

2004.43 

auxiliary  agencies 

3488.56 

transportation 

3348.56 

school  library 

140. 

total  $19714.89 

To  the  acting  visitor  the  town  paid  $120,  This  is  the  only  form 
of  control  for  which  the  town  provides  or  pays.  Whether  such 
control  is  adequate  will  appear  later.  The  town  does  not  regard 
the  direction  and  control  of  its  schools  of  much  importance  if  the 
money  expended  is  any  index 

For  instruction  of  its  children  the  town  paid  $12319.77  more  than 
two-thirds  of  which  was  for  teachers'  wages.  The  average  salary 
paid  to  women  teachers  was  $43.41  and  to  men  $89.94.  The  prin- 
cipals of  the  grammar  schools  receive  good  salaries  but  the  other 
salaries  are  low 

The  teachers  in  the  small  schools  face  the  greatest  difficulties 
and  are  the  hardest  to  obtain  and  yet  are  paid  the  lowest  salaries 

For  textbooks  and  supplementary  reading  $513.23  were  paid, 
less  than  a  dollar  per  pupil  in  average  attendance.  The  paucity  of 
good  reading  matter  noted  elsewhere  is  due  to  insufficient  ex- 
penditure and  to  a  poor  distribution  among  the  schools  of  the 
material  available.  This  is  a  form  of  aid  to  the  teachers  which 
can  ill  be  curtailed 

The  cost  of  operating  the  school  plant  is  low.  The  teachers  are 
permitted  to  do  the  janitor  work  in  a  number  of  schools  as  a 
means  of  increasing  their  income 

For  transportation  the  town  spent  $3348.56  part  of  which  is 
refunded  by  the  state.  This  sum  is  bound  to  grow  with  further 
consolidation  of  buildings.  The  town  has  spent  regularly  for  ap- 
paratus and  libraries  a  sum  of  $140  one-half  of  which  is  paid  by 
the   state 


19 


The  increase  of  income  to  the  town  from  a  growing  grand  list 
has  been  far  more  rapid  than  the  increase  of  expenditures  for 
schools.  Supervision  teachers'  wages  apparatus  equipment  and 
the  plant  all  require  large  increases.  Upon  the  plant  larger  but  not 
sufficient  sums  have  been  expended.  To  place  these  schools  on  the 
basis  of  largest  service  to  the  community  a  larger  tax  rate  will  be 
needed.  These  schools  represent  the  community's  greatest  invest- 
ment and  they  are  therefore  worth  a  generous  support.  Some 
sacrifice  for  the  children  has  not  been  distasteful  to  East  Wind- 
sor's people  in  the  past  and  it  ought  not  to  be  so  now 

CHAPTER  V     • 

Buildings 

Neither  of  the  two  buildings  in  district  number  one  is  satis- 
factory. The  old  academy  building  housing  on  the  first  floor  the 
upper  grades  and  on  the  second  floor  until  lately  the  grange  is  a 
century  old  next  year.  It  has  not  been  kept  in  good  condition  and 
hence  needs  considerable  overhauling  and  re-arranging.  Because 
of  the  poor  conditions  at  the  little  white  wooden  building  a  little 
way  up  the  road  the  remodeling  of  the  old  academy  to  accommo- 
date both  rooms  is  well  worth  considering.  Pointing  up  the  brick 
work,  new  wood-work,  better  arrangements  for  lighting,  heating 
and  ventilating  would  make  the  building  desirable  and  retain  for 
the  future  the  ancient  associations  which  cluster  around  its  walls 

The  desks  are  of  the  ancient  double  type  showing  the  scars 
of  many  jack-knives.  The  bench  in  front  long  ago  lost  its  legs  in 
ceaseless  battle  and  now  propped  upon  a  soap  box  makes  shift  to 
continue  in  service.  The  top  of  an  old  organ  has  parted  from  its 
former  under-structure  and  balancing  on  a  box  serves  as  an  un- 
certain and  not  too  useful  table.  The  one  chair  in  the  room  serves 
the  teacher  constantly  but  the  visitor  must  shift  for  himself  and 
an  uncertain  shift  he  has 

This  room  is  well  equipped  with  slate  boards  although  they  are 
not  well  located.  The  books  are  few  but  of  excellent  choice.  No 
means  of  flying  a  flag  exists  and  there  was  no  globe 

The  privies  are  in  poor  condition.  There  is  no  water  supply  on 
the  grounds  and  no  means  of  teaching  cleanliness.  The  play- 
ground is  inadequate 

The  primary  building  surely  needs  repairing.  Some  plaster  has 
fallen  from  the  ceiling  and  more  is  cracked  and  nearing  its  fall. 
The  school  was  dirty  not  merely  with  temporary  dust  but  with 
grime  long  accumulated 

The  privies  are  filthy  and  vile.  Part  of  the  roof  is  off  the  west 
privy.    They  need  repairing  and  painting  as  well  as  cleaning 

The  entry  floor  and  threshold  of  the  school  need  attention.  The 
interior  walls  are  neither  well  painted,  paper  nor  varnished.  An 
old  flag  is  nearly  the  only  attempt  at  decoration  and  no  means  of 
flying  the  flag  has  been  provided 

The  slate  blackboards  are  good.  The  desks  are  not  in  good 
condition  neither  are  they  suitable  for   children  of  the   ages   en- 

20 


rolled.  There  is  no  library  and  no  supplementary  reading.  One 
poor  map  aid  is  the  geography  work.  The  window  shades  are 
poor  and  the  room  is  not  supplied  with  good  water  for  drinking 
or  washing 

The  Warehouse  Point  building  situated  well  back  from  the  road 
on  an  ample  playground  has  been  recently  enlarged  by  a  new  brick 
front  with  several  rooms.  It  is  difficult  to  see  where  all  the  money 
expended  on  this  building  went 

The  walls  to  the  floor  were  kalsomined  a  dead  white  and  of 
course  show  every  mark,  every  bit  of  dirt.  Paint  of  a  dark  cream 
or  brown  ought  to  be  put  on  below  the  four  foot  line  at  least  and 
baseboards  provided  to  prot^t  the  plaster.  The  rooms  would  be 
pleasanter  and  there  would  be  less  eye-strain  with  a  softer  tint 
on  the  walls 

The  basements  are  very  dark,  dirty  and  ill  smelling.  This  was 
especially  true  of  the  boys'  side  and  the  passages  thereto.  Some 
means  of  lighting  is  necessary  to  avoid  real  danger  of  a  serious 
nature 

The  school  is  well  equipped  and  is  supplied  with  more  apparatus 
than  was  found  in  most  of  the  other  buildings.  It  needs  visitors' 
chairs,  better  provision  for  personal  hygiene  and  a  reference 
library.  The  front  grounds  decorated  with  flowers  and  shrubs 
would  make  the  school  a  decidedly  attractive  addition  to  the 
village 

The  Melrose  school  has  a  most  undesirable  location  with  the 
trolley  in  front  and  the  railroad  on  one  side.  Both  outbuildings 
have  markings  and  cuttings 

The  interior  walls  need  refinishing  and  the  whole  interior  needs 
a  thorough  cleaning 

The  blackboards  are  poor  and  inadequate.  There  is  no  means 
of  flying  the  flag  and  there  is  no  water  supply  on  the  grounds. 
There  is  no  means  of  enforcing  personal  cleanliness 

The  Broad  Brook  building  is  a  large  brick  structure  set  on  the 
hillside  above  the  street  and  trolley.  It  is  most  unattractive  in 
every  way.  Ivies  on  the  fences  and  about  the  building  would 
greatly  improve  the  appearance.  Flowers  and  shrubs  about  the 
street  side  would  also  help 

The  exterior  wood-work  needs  painting.  The  interior  is  in  only 
fair  condition.  In  one  room  the  plaster  is  cracked  and  in  need 
of  repair.  The  whole  interior  ought  to  be  refinished  and  made 
fresh,  clean  and  neat 

The  privies  are  disgraceful.  Lewd  cuttings  and  markings, 
broken  boards  and  fencing,  poor  roofing,  filthy  floors  and  seats 
were  found  here.  It  appeared  that  the  privies  were  inadequate  in 
the  first  place  and  poorly  placed  and  constructed  in  the  next  place. 
The  fences  are  in  need  of  repairing.  The  former  acting  visitor 
repeatedly  criticized  these  conditions  without  avail 

The  equipment  is  not  first  class.  Some  desks  ought  to  be  re- 
placed with  new  of  the  single  adjustable  type.     More  slate  boards 

are  needed.   Some  rooms  lack  proper  maps   globes  and  dictionaries 

• 

21 


The  school  at  Windsorville  has  been  heated  with  difficulty. 
Storm  windows  have  been  supplied  and  only  a  few  have  any  venti- 
lation attachments  and  those  merely  8"x2"  apertures.  The  nat- 
ural result  was  a  very  poorly  ventilated  room.  In  May  the  storm 
windows  had  not  been  removed  and  the  warm  foul  air  resulting 
from  lack  of  ventilation  was  dangerous  to  the  health  of  the  chil- 
dren as  well  as  forbidding  of  much  brain  work 

This  room  was  well  equipped  with  slate  boards,  good  desks, 
maps,  globe  and  dictionary.  The  provision  for  water  and  its  use 
was  poor.    The  school  needs  chairs  for  teacher  and  visitors 

The  privies  were  poor,  dirty  and  unsatisfactory.  There  was  a 
flag  but  no  means  of  flying  it 

The  Barber  Hill  school  gave  many  signs  of  neglect.  The  ex- 
terior needed  painting.  The  floors  were  poor.  The  interior  was 
dirty  and  had  not  been  thoroughly  cleaned  for  months.  The  heat- 
ing and  ventilating  system  was  unsatisfactory.  There  was  no  flag 
nor  any  means  of  flying  it.  The  privies  were  in  a  sad  state  of  filth 
and  disrepair  with  lewd  markings  and  cuttings  in  both 

There  was  no  dictionary,  no  supplementary  reading,  no  book- 
case, no  chairs,  no  clock,  no  satisfactory  arrangement  for  drinking 
water  or  washing,  no  door-mat,  no  mirror,  soap  or  towels,  no 
bulletin  board.  Only  two  maps  were  available  and  there  was  no 
flag  or  means  of  flying  one.  One  pane  of  glass  was  broken.  The 
few  books  in  the  library  had  been  purchased  from  the  proceeds  of 
an  entertainment  given  by  the  teacher  and  children.  It  is  alleged 
that  after  an  outbreak  of  a  contagious  disease  here  a  year  ago 
the  books  were  ordered  burnt  but  by  the  local  health  officer's  in- 
structions only  the  old  ones  were  destroyed 

The  teacher  stated  that  the  school  visitor  had  not  visited  her 
school  up  to  that  date.  The  acting  visitor  reports  visiting  the 
school  in  the  fall  but  from  then  until  May  no  visits  were  made 

Verily  this  school  has  been  neglected 

The  state  of  the  school  plant  does  not  indicate  a  great  amount 
of  pride  therein  by  the  public.  All  seven  buildings  require  ex- 
penditures of  considerable  sums  to  become  standard  schools.  This 
town  is  well  able  to  maintain  them  in  first  rate  order  with  little 
or  no  sacrifice  by  the  people 

An  adequate  heating  and  ventilating  system  with  an  even  dis- 
tribution of  heat  or  fresh  air  is  not  found  in  any  school.  It  is 
most  needed  in  the  outside  schools 

The  schools  in  districts  2  3  4  5  6  and  9  have  been  closed  in 
recent  years  by  the  school  commitee  following  a  wise  policy  of 
consolidation.  An  appropriation  for  a  new  building  to  combine 
the  Barber  Hill  and  Windsorville  districts  was  voted  by  a  town 
meeting  but  action  was  withheld  by  the  selectmen  because  of 
strenuous  but  near-sighted  opposition  by  the  people  of  the  former 
district 

22 


CHAPTER  VI 

Teachers — training — experience — certification — rating — hindrances 

Twenty-one  teachers  including  the  music  supervisor  are  em- 
ployed.    An  analysis  of  their  training  is  submitted  below 

college  graduates  4 

partial  college  training  1 

normal  school  graduates  8 

partial  normal  training  2 

summer  normal  training  2 

high  school  graduates  2 

kindergartwi  2 

A  preference  has  existed  for  normal  school  graduates  with  a 
strong  second  choice  for  the  college  trained  teacher.  There  has 
been  no  system  of  distributing  the  different  kinds  of  training  for 
college  graduates  appear  in  the  little  one-room  schools  and  in  the 
centers.  One  teacher  only  of  those  outside  the  centers  had  re- 
ceived a  full  normal  training  and  that  one  was  a  sojourner  only 

The  figures  in  the  report  of  the  school  committee  to  the  state 
board  of  education  giving  the  number  of  months  experience  were 
so  inaccurate  (six  errors  ranging  from  9  to  200  months  are  known) 
as  to  make  further  study  worthless.  It  may  be  noted  that  9  were 
beginners  in  their  districts  but  only  2  were  beginners  in  teaching 

In  point  of  training  and  experience  this  corps  is  a  common  type. 
No  good  reason  why  a  normal  training  is  not  a  minimum  req,uire- 
ment  is  advanced.  Such  a  minimum  of  professional  training  would 
be  possible  and  in  the  long  run  greatly  to  the  schools'  advantage 

In  the  report  of  the  secretary  of  the  town  school  committee  for 
September  1915  it  was  stated  that  all  teachers  held  town  certificates 
good  until  July  1  1916.  It  was  stated  that  6  held  state  certificates 
also.  Upon  visitation  and  investigation  the  following  facts  ap- 
pear 

1  Nine  teachers  held  no  town  or  state  certificates  as  re- 
quired by  law 

2  None  of  the  nine  had  ever  been  examined  as  required 
by  law 

3  Two  of  the  nine  were  teaching  their  third  year  in  the 
town 

4  One  teacher  upon  request  was  promised  a  certificate  in 
the  fall  but  had  not  received  it 

The  law  provides  that 

1  town  school  committees  shall  examine  all  persons  desir- 
ing to  teach  in  the  public  schools 

2  the  town  school  committee  shall  give  certificates  to  those 
with  whose  moral  character  and  ability  to  teach  they  are 
satisfied 

3  no  certificate  to  teach  in  grades  above  the  third  shall  be 
granted  to  any  person  who  has  not  passed  a  satisfactory 
examination  in  hygiene 

23 


4  the  certificate  of  qualification  issued  by  the  state  board 
of  education  shall  be  accepted  by  all  town  school  com- 
mittees in  lieu  of  examination 

5  no  teacher  shall  be  employed  in  any  school  receiving  any 
portion  of  its  support  from  the  public  money  until  he  has 
received  a  certification  of  approval  in  accordance  with 
the  law  nor  shall  any  teacher  be  entitled  to  any  wages 
so  far  as  the  same  are  paid  out  of  any  public  money  ap- 
propriated to  schools  unless  he  possesses  such  certificate 
dated  prior  to  the  opening  of  his  school 

The  provisions  of  these  acts  have  not  been  enforced  in  this 
town.  The  teachers  have  not  been  examined  and  certificates  of 
approval  have  not  been  issued.  Teachers  above  the  third  grade 
have  not  passed  an  examination  in  hygiene.  These  teachers  have 
been  employed  in  these  schools  which  receive  a  portion  of  their 
support  from  the  public  money.  Teachers  without  certificates  have 
been  paid  wages  to  which  they  were  not  entitled  under  the  law 

Certificating  the  teacher  was  left  some  years  ago  by  the  com- 
mittee to  the  chairman  and  secretary  whose  practice  it  was  to 
accept  state  certificates  and  certificates  from  satisfactory  schools 
of  examinations  passed  in  statutory  subjects.  Were  this  practice 
persistently  followed  it  would  still  be  contrary  to  the  law  which 
makes  no  provision  for  accepting  any  certificate  or  evidence  in 
lieu  of  an  examination  other  than  a  state  teachers  certificate 

Until  such  time  as  East  Windsor  shall  have  complied  with  this 
law  in  all  its  provisions  no  portion  of  the  public  moneys  should  be 
paid  to  the  town 

Greater  care  in  reporting  to  the  state  should  be  exercised  by  the 
town  school  committee 

The  teachers  are  rated 

good  16 

unsatisfactory       5 

The  five  unsatisfactory  ought  to  have  been  weeded  out  early  for 
the  nature  of  their  work  was  all  too  apparent.  Legal  visits  have  not 
been  made  to  any  school  and  certainly  without  visitation  by  those 
authorized  to  act  the  children  cannot  be  protected  from  worse  than' 
useless  training  and  such  teachers  eliminated.  In  one  room  the 
wildest  disorder  obtained.  In  two  others  habits  of  disobedience 
and  idleness  and  a  general  disrespect  for  everything  and  everybody 
including  the  teacher  were  evident.  Such  conditions  due  to  in- 
difference or  inability  of  teachers  are  deplorable  and  to  the  chil- 
dren injurious  to  a  high  degree 

Some  of  the  sixteen  are  enthusiastic  teachers  with  high  ideals 
of  their  duties  to  the  children.  They  are  accomplishing  much. 
Others  are  doing  enough  from  day  to  day  to  keep  up  with  the  pro- 
cession but  their  minds  are  on  what  ought  to  be  done  for  them 
rather  than  on  what  they  can  do  for  the  children.  Such  teachers 
while  not  uncommon  are  unfortunate.  They  view  possible  im- 
provements from  selfish  angles  and  therefore  generally  are  ob- 
stacles which  the  wheels  of  progress  sooner  or  later  pass  over  and 
frequently  crush 

24 


It  is  unfortunate  that  the  central  agency  for  co-ordinating  the 
work  of  these  teachers  has  been  weak,  uncertain  and  little  inclined 
to  action.  The  usefulness  of  some  teachers  could  be  greatly  en- 
hanced by  proper  direction  and  suggestion 

In  conclusion  the  schools  as  a  whole  are  seriously  hindered  by 
an  incompetent  minority  of  the  teaching  force  and  by  lack  of 
skilled  direction 


CHAPTER   Vll 

Visitation — observation — instruction — management 

The  schools  of  East  Windsor  present  most  unpleasing  contrasts. 
In  a  few  rooms  an  atmosphere  of  enterprise,  initiative  and  indus- 
try is  found;  in  others  a  humdrum  dissatisfied,  fault-finding  spirit 
prevails ;  in  still  others  a  perfunctory  performance  of  the  daily 
tasks  takes  place 

A  few  schools  made  a  creditable  record  on  the  tests  given; 
others  were  failures.  In  some  cases  the  children  were  well 
schooled,  and  reading  was  taught  with  good  results;  in  another 
the  subject  was  not  taught  at  all  until  the  second  or  third  year 

The  beginners  at  school  were  allowed  to  spend  their  time  in 
idleness  or  at  best  in  most  unprofitable  employment.  In  one  school 
care  is  taken  to  make  all  the  work  neat;  in  the  next  slovenly 
habits  of  workmanship  are  tolerated.  Comments  on  a  few  schools 
are  printed  below 

1  Much  initiative  and  enterprise  evident.  The  pupils  have 
good  habits  of  work  and  conduct.  Sewing  is  taught  once 
a  week  by  an  outsider  without  pay  but  no  citizenship  is 
taught  as  required  by  law.  The  teacher  is  organizing  the 
recreation  periods  to  provide  all  with  profitable  exercise. 
Time  tables  are  not  clear  but  are  inclusive.  The  results 
of  the  tests  were  good.  No  instruction  in  writing  quota- 
tions had  been  given 

2  Poor  housekeeping  in  a  room  already  needy  of  repairs 
provided  an  unsatisfactory  environment.  Some  children 
were  idle;  one  was  coloring  pictures  in  a  ctalog;  one 
was  cutting  paper  into  small  particles ;  a  few  were  with- 
out work  to  do.  The  board  work  consisted  largely  of 
music  exercises  and  songs 

Reading  in  this  primary  school  receives  30  minutes  a  day 
while  arithmetic,  language  and  history  or  geography  re- 
ceives 60  minutes  each.  The  time  table  showed  recita- 
tions only 

The  work  evidenced  a  lack  of  preparation  and  a  lack  of 
the  art  of  teaching  most  undesirable  in  primary  work 

The  writing  was  illegible.  The  oral  reading  of  worthless 
trash  was  without  fluency  or  expresison  and  no  training 
in  silent  reading  had  been  given.  The  number  work  was 
far  behind  a  reasonable  standard  of  accomplishment.  It 
was  a  poor  school 

25 


3  The  words  of  the  teacher,  "I  do  the  best  I  can  but  I  don't 
know  how.  I  want  someone  to  show  me  what  to  do  and 
how  to  do  it,"  described  the  situation  in  full 

4  The  noise  upon  entering  the  room  was  deafening.  The 
teacher  was  attempting  to  hear  a  class  recite  in  the 
front  of  the  room.  They  talked  and  conversed  paying 
little  heed  to  the  teacher  while  the  children  at  their  seats 
walked,  talked,  slapped  one  another  and  "made  the 
welkin  ring."  The  children  had  made  no  progress  and 
under  such  control  progress  except  in  the  wrong  direction 
cannot  be  expected 

5  The  teacher  taught  a  difficult  language  lesson  without 
reference  to  textbooks  or  other  material.  She  was  thor- 
oughly prepared.  The  class  responded  interestedly  and 
manifestly  were  making  progress.  The  program  was  un- 
balanced in  the  apportionment  of  time.  The  instruction 
and  board  work  were  in  marked  contrast  to  that  found 
in  many  schools 

It  was  clear  that  few"  of  the  teachers  understood  the  courses  of 
study  and  how  to  use  them.  Few  knew  the  ends  and  purposes  to 
be  attained  and  fewer  still  the  best  ways  of  achieving  those  ends. 
Some  teachers  had  not  been  supplied  with  copies 

No  attempt  has  been  made  to  help  them  systematically.  The 
teachers  are  introduced  to  their  schools  and  then  left  to  their  own 
resources.  Such  management  has  come  to  be  regarded  as  danger- 
ous to  the  welfare  of  the  children  and  nearly  always  it  is  wasteful 
of  time  money  and  energy.  The  teachers  and  the  children  are 
entitled  to  all  the  help,  aid  and  guidance  the  town  can  afiford  and 
the  town  can  afford  any  that  they  need 

No  plan  books  are  required  and  only  a  few  teachers  keep  them 
voluntarily.  Some  sort  of  daily  plan  is  necessary  if  a  school  is  to 
make  a  steady  and  sure  progress.  The  writing  of  such  a  plan  is 
not  laborious  and  is  far  from  useless.  It  promotes  clear  thinking 
and  if  carefully  examined  by  an  outsider  from  time  to  time  de- 
mands a  definiteness  seldom  secured  in  any  other  way 

About  the  only  tests  given  these  schools  by  the  administrative 
officers  are  the  examinations  for  entrance  to  the  high  school. 
These  are  composed  of  fact  questions  and  are  not  designed  to  help 
and  guide  future  instruction.  Comparative  tests  at  irregular  in- 
tervals would  well  serve  the  interests  of  the  schools.  A  few  such 
tests  have  been  given  the  6th  7th  and  8th  grades  from  time  to 
time.  Essays  have  also  been  collected  from  these  grades.  A 
former  visitor  reports  these  to  have  been  very  useful 


CHAPTER  vni 

A  dministration — the    law — visitation — registers — discipline — mode    of 

teaching — length  of  visits — supervision — reading — 

course  of  studies — records 

The  administration  of  the  East  Windsor  schools  is  in  the  hands 
of  a  committee  of  nine  men  who  as  agents  of  the  state  deriving 
their  powers   from   the   state   have    authority    to    maintain    good 

26 


schools  for  not  less  than  thirty-six  weeks;  to  manage  the  school 
property  of  the  town  and  to  make  repairs ;  to  examine  certificate 
and  employ  teachers;  to  determine  the  conditions  of  instruction  in 
each  school;  to  determine  the  school  any  given  child  shall  attend; 
to  purchase  supplementary  reading;  to  prescribe  textbooks  subject 
to  the  control  of  the  state  board  of  education;  to  provide  evening 
school  instruction;  to  choose  a  superintendent  and  to  prescribe  his 
duties;  and  to  provide  transportation  where  reasonable 

The  committee  has  been  organized  as  required  by  law.  It  has 
elected  a  chairman  and  secretary 

The  committee  seems  to  reflect  the  sentiment  of  the  town  very 
accurately  and  is  therefore  representative 

The  actual  administration  of  these  schools  has  been  largely  in 
the  hands  of  the  acting  school  visitor,  the  board .  rarely  meeting 
and  still  more  rarely  interfering  with  or  legislating  upon  ordinary 
school  affairs.  So  true  has  this  been  that  in  January  1916  when 
the  acting  school  visitor  resigned  and  left  town  the  board  was 
helpless  and  did  not  even  meet  for  consideration  of  school  prob- 
lems until  July.  It  was  so  far  from  awake  to  its  duties  as  an  agency 
of  the  state  that  it  neglected  to  appoint  an  acting  school  visitor 
or  as  a  body  to  take  any  steps  to  guarantee  the  progress  of  the 
schools  during  that  period 

The  retiring  acting  school  visitor  suggested  a  local  principal  as 
one  fit  to  perform  these  duties.  The  chairman  consented  and  the 
committee  was  not  even  consulted.  This  principal  did  not  begin 
his  visitation  until  May 

Under  the  law  the  acting  visitor  must  visit  all  schools  at  least 
twice  during  each  term  once  within  four  weeks  after  the  opening 
and  again  during  the  four  weeks  preceding  the  close.  At  these 
visitations  the  school  register  library  schoolhouse  and  outbuild- 
ings must  be  examined  and  the  studies  discipline  and  mode  of 
teaching  and  general  condition  of  the  school  investigated.  The 
law  further  provides  that  half  a  day  shall  be  spent  in  each  school 
so  visited  unless  otherwise  directed 

No  evidence  could  be  found  to  show  that  the  law  regarding 
visitation  of  schools  has  been  complied  with  in  recent  years.  Dur- 
ing the  winter  and  spring  terms  no  visitation  complying  with  the 
requirements  of  the  law  was  made  even  assuming  that  the  man 
illegally  acting  as  school  visitor  had  been  duly  appointed  by  the 
committee 

The  former  acting  visitor  recalls  visiting  the  Barber  Hill  school 
in  the  fall  term  but  does  not  assert  that  the  visit  conformed  to  the 
requirements  of  the  law 

The  former  acting  visitor  reports  that  his  practice  has  been  to 
spend  three  days  at  the  beginning  of  the  year  visiting  the  schools 
arranging  for  supplies  seeing  that  the  teachers  were  properly 
started  and  adapting  the  course  of  studies  to  local  conditions.  He 
reports  that  thereafter  he  spent  one  day  or  more  per  week  visiting 
schools    generally  with  a  definite  purpose  and  frequently  teaching 

27 


a  school  to  show  the  teacher  how.  The  salary  received  was  $120 
per  year.  Certainly  no  more  time  could  be  reasonably  expected  of 
any  man  for  the  salary  paid 

.The  condition  of  the  buildings  reported  elsewhere  gave  little 
evidence  of  examination.  The  registers  were  not  complete  and 
had  been  illegally  kept.  At  the  Scantic  school  full  days  attendance 
were  recorded  when  the  school  door  had  not  been  opened.  It  ap- 
pears therefore  that  the  registers  were  not  examined  with  care 

The  discipline  in  a.  few  schools  as  noted  elsewhere  is  of  the 
poorest  and  baffles  description.  It  was  so  apparent  that  any  in- 
vestigation would  have  noted  conditions.  They  demanded  imme- 
diate action  but  none  was  forthcoming 

The  mode  of  teaching  varied  greatly  from  school  to  school. 
Uniformity  does  not  exist  in  methods  subject  matter  or  in  the 
progress  of  the  children.  Some  of  the  teachers  did  not  have 
the  course  of  studies  adopted  by  the  town 

The  legally  specified  duties  of  the  acting  visitor  have  not  been 
performed 

The  committee  meets  regularly  three  times  per  year  and  at  other 
times  as  called  by  its  secretary.  It  is  reported  exceedmgly  diffi- 
cult to  get  a  quorum  and  that  a  full  board  meeting  is  a  rarity 

Common  practice  apparently  is  for  the  secretary  to  phone  mem- 
bers of  the  committee  concerning  possible  dates  for  meetings.  If 
little  prospect  of  a  quorum  appears  no  meeting  is  called.  The  in- 
spector requested  a  meeting  of  the  secretary  and  of  the  chairman 
but  was  told  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  get  the  committee  to- 
gether before  the  annual  meeting  two  months  later.  No  notice  of 
that  meeting  was  received  and  repeated  requests  since  have  been 
unavailing 

Enthusiasm  for  good  schools  is  not  apparent.  Matters  of  repair, 
attendance,  supervision  and  adequate  supplies  have  not  received 
proper  attention.  Returns  to  the  state  board  of  education  are  in- 
accurate. Irregular  meetings,  failure  to  perform  the  duties  charged 
to  them  in  the  statutes,  laxness  in  appointing  a  school  visitor  and 
neglected  buildings  are  evidences  of  a  lack  of  interest  by  the  com- 
mittee 

East  Windsor  is  one  of  the  two  towns  in  Hartford  Cqunty  and 
of  the  fifteen  towns  of  the  state  which  do  not  employ  a  skilled  pro- 
fessional superintendent  of  schools.  The  activities  of  such  a  man 
are  greatly  needed  to  direct  intelligently  the  work  of  the  teachers 
and  children.  A  course  of  studies  detailed  and  specific,  standards 
of  accomplishment  both  qualitative  and  quantitative  in  every  sub- 
ject, approved  and  successful  methods  uniform  in  all  schools,  ac- 
curate and  immediate  information  upon  the  physical  condition  of 
the  whole  school  plant  and  upon  the  educational  work  of  each 
teacher  can  all  be  supplied  by  such  supervision.  There  is  no  in- 
dustry involving  several  hundred  hands,  twenty  managers  in  nine 
scattered  plants  which  would  survive  without  an  intelligent  skilled 
directing  head.  This  industry  of  schooling  East  Windsor's  chil- 
dren is  a  vital  one  to  the  welfare  of  the  town  and  state.  East 
Windsor  cannot  afiford  to  deprive  the  children  of  the  benefits  de- 
rived from  competent  supervision 

28 


East  Windsor  a  few  years  ago  overwhelmingly  voted  down  the 
proposition  to  request  the  state  board  of  education  to  appoint  a 
supervising  agent.  If  this  aid  is  refused  then  an  equivalent  sub- 
stitute should  be  provided  for  the  sake  of  the  children 

But  East  Windsor  prefers  to  employ  a  special  supervisor  of 
music — prefers  because  without  such  supervisor  or  with  one  less 
teacher  the  town  could  take  advantage  of  the  law  by  which  the 
state  appoints  and  pays  a  supervisor  without  cost  to  the  town. 
These  agents  of  the  state  are  required  to  visit  each  school  twice 
a  month.  Supervision  of  all  subjects  without  expense  is  refused  in 
order  to  employ  a  special  supervisor  of  music  at  a  cost  of  several 
hundred  dollars 

East  Windsor  may  also  appoint  a  superintendent  of  schools  fix 
and  pay  his  salary  and  prescribe  his  duties  which  shall  include  the 
legally  prescribed  duties  of  the  acting  school  visitor.  Such  super- 
intendent must  hold  a  certificate  of  approval  by  the  state  board  of 
education.  The  state  will  refund  one  half  of  his  salary  up  to  a 
sum  not  to  exceed 


East  Windsor  may  join  ninety-six  other  towns  and  obtain  skilled 
supervision  without  cost  or  it  may  employ  a  superintendent  and 
receive  state  aid.    One  or  the  other  it  should  do  without  delay 

In  these  schools  there,  was  no  evidence  of  supervision  in  the 
daily  time  tables  for  the  order  and  -apportionment  of  time  to  the 
various  subjects  appeared  without  rhyme  or  reason.  Legal  sub- 
jects frequently  did  not  appear.  Time  tables  were  seldom  posted 
and  rarely  followed 

The  limited  supply  and  poor  distribution  of  good  supplementary 
reading  evidenced  lack  of  control 

The  course  of  studies  is  indefinite  and  not  helpful.  It  details 
no  methods  and  certainly  the  manner  of  imparting  knowledge  has 
much  to  do  with  the  accomplishment  of  the  subjective  aims  of 
education.  Here  if  anywhere  adequate  and  skilled  supervision 
manifests  itself 

The  scope  of  the  instruction  offered  is  narrow  but  a  special 
teacher  is  provided  for  music.  Is  that  the  subject  most  worth 
while  in  these  schools?  It  costs  the  town  more  than  any  other 
subject 

No  drawing  science  sewing  agriculture  or  cooking  is  sys- 
tematically taught.  These  girls  every  one  can  be  taught  the 
elements  of  housewifery.  They  need  ability  to  sew  and  to  cook  far 
more  than  they  need  square  root  and  much  similar  material  upon 
which  time  is  wasted.  The  boys  need  some  knowledge  of  the 
science  of  agriculture  and  the  other  sciences  underlying  and  accom- 
panying plant  production 

No  permanent  records  of  pupils'  progress  are  kept.  Such 
records  are  desirable  in  the  several  schools  to  avoid  wasteful  repe- 
tition and  resulting  loss  of  time.  They  are  useful  for  reference 
and  if  properly  designed  are  evidence  by  which  a  school's  work 
can  be  measured 

A  defense  of  the  work  of  these  schools  has  been  attempted 
through  the  records  of  its  graduates  doing  successful  work  in  the 

2C 


neighboring  high  schools.  The  work  of  a  select  few  is  no  fair 
basis  for  approving  or  disapproving  a  school  system.  What  does 
it  do  for  the  large  majority? 

The  statement  has  been  inferentially  made  that  a  comparison  of 
the  percentage  of  East  Windsor's  pupils  sent  to  high  school  with 
the  percentages  of  its  neighbors  would  be  very  much  to  East 
Windsor's  advantage.  The  per  cent  of  the  total  registration  at- 
tending high  school  appears  below 

Windsor  Locks  16% 

Spmers  15% 

East  Hartford  14% 

Suffield  12% 

Ellington  11% 

South  Windsor  11% 

East  Windsor  8% 

Windsor  7% 

The  registration  figures  are  for  1914-1915 

The  high  school  registration  figures  for  Suffield  Windsor  Locks 
and  Windsor  are  for  1914-1915.  All  other  figures  are  for  1915-1916 
and  in  all  cases  the  latest  available.  Suffield's  figures  do  not  in- 
clude attendance  in  high  schools  other  than  the  Suffield  school  for 
they  were  not  available 

Windsor  Locks'  unusually  good  showing  is  due  in  a  measure  to 
the  large  elementary  parochial  school  which  feeds  the  high  school 
but  lowers  the  total  public  school  registration 

East  Windsor's  showing  is  not  advantageous  ^ 

The  East  Windsor  town  school  committee  has  not  performed 
the  duties  with  which  it  is  charged  as  an  agency  of  the  state.  There 
was  no  evidence  to  show  a  live  interest  in  the  children  and  their 
schooling.  On  the  contrary  there  was  much  evidence  of  indiffer- 
ence and  inertia 

The  new  members  on  the  committee  have  manifested  a  desire  to 
improve  the  schools  and  apparently  they  will  take  a  live  interest 
in  their  work 

CHAPTER  ix 

Summary 

East  Windsor's  school  population  is  growing  rapidly  but  its 
financial  resources  are  growing  much  faster.  The  town's  expendi- 
tures for  schools  have  not  kept  pace  with  either  although  the  pay- 
ments for  roads  have  increased  faster  than  for  schools 

The  town  is  essentially  agricultural  with  some  manufacturing. 
Its  future  lies  in  the  development  of  its  agriculture  and  toward 
that  direction  the  schools  should  be  pointed 

The  administration  of  the  schools  has  been  largely  in  the  hands 
of  the  acting  school  visitor,  the  town  school  committee  taking 
little  active  part.  With  the  resignation  of  that  officer  and  his  de- 
pature  from  town  the  committee  was  so  little  interested  in  what 
became  of  the  schools  that  it  did  not  even  meet  for  seven  months 

30 


thereafter  and  the  care  of  the  schools  was  placed  "on  trial"  in  the 
hands  of  a  local  principal  to  whom  opposition  immediately  arose 
on  the  other  side  of  the  town 

No  such  management  would  be  tolerated  by  a  community  alive 
to  the  importance  of  its  children  and  their  schooling 

The  plant  needs  concentrating,  enlarging  and  repairing.  The 
equipment  and  apparatus  are  not  sufficient  for  the  proper  inter- 
pretation of  a  good  course  of  studies.  The  course  of  studies  is 
unsatisfactory  from  all  points  of  view.  The  system  of  recording 
and  reporting  is  inadequate  and  inaccurate.  The  supervision  is 
amateurish  and  not  skillful.  It  does  not  co-ordinate  the  schools 
nor  direct  their  educational  work.    It  does  not  conform  to  the  law 

The  schools  range  from  very  good  to  very  poor.  The  average  is 
not  high.  Whether  a  school  is  good  or  poor  is  wholly  determined 
by  the  teacher.  She  is  neither  helped  nor  directed  by  the  con- 
trolling officers.  The  progress  of  the  pupils  is  slow  at  best  and 
the  amount  of  actual  retardation  is  great.  The  discipline  in  some 
schools  is  of  the  worst  type.  The  instruction  is  good  and  poor  and 
for  neither  does  the  system  of  control  provide.  The  textbooks  are 
good  but  are  not  sufficient  in  variety.  There  is  little  good  reading 
matter.  The  registers  are  not  legally  kept  nor  are  the  time  tables 
clear,  full  or  properly  adjusted 

In  some  parts  of  the  system  there  is  a  marked  enthusiasm  cen- 
tering about  one  or  two  individuals.  Indeed  almost  all  the  good 
work  in  these  schools  is  due  to  individuals  and  not  at  all  to  the 
system  of  which  they  are  part.  Such  systems  mean  here  and  there 
occasionally  rapid  progress  and  high  quality  of  work  but  for 
most  of  the  children  they  mean  most  of  the  time  poor  training. 
Organization  should  tend  to  make  good  schooling  the  only  possible 
schooling  and  should  reduce  the  personal  dangers  to  a  minimum. 
It  is  democractic  to  give  to  each  child  a  training  equivalent  to  the 
best.  A  well  organized  and  carefully  manipulated  system  of  con- 
trol is  the  only  agency  which  can  approach  such  a  standard.  Such 
a  system  has  not  been  provided  by  East  Windsor 


CHAPTER   X 

Recommendations 

Employment  of  a  skilled  supervisor  to  direct  the  educational 
work  of  the  schools 

Consolidation  of  all  the  schools  into  two  buildings,  one  at  the 
Point  and  one  at  Broad  Brook 

Enlargement  and  reconstruction  of  the  Broad  Brook  school  to 
accommodate  the  increased  registration  due  to  consolidation 
and  growth 

Until  such  time  as  2  and  3  can  be  carried  through  the  repair 
of  the  outside  schools 

Purchase  of  equipment  and  apparatus  to  put  each  school  on  a 
standard  basis 


31 


6  The   adoption  of  a  broader    more  detailed   and   more   definite 
course  of  studies 

7  Adoption  of  a  normal  school  training  as  a  sine-qua-non  of  em- 
ployment of  teachers 

8  Development  of  means  for  training  the  teachers  in  service 

9  Purchase  of  good  reading  matter  for  all  grades 

10  Installation  of  an  adequate  heating  and  ventilating  system  in 
all  the  outside  schools 

11  Systematic  decoration  of  school  grounds 

12  Provision   of  a   satisfactory  water    supply    for    drinking    and 
washing  purposes  with  mirrors,  soap  and  towels 

13  Modern  sanitary  privies  "free  from  markings  and  cuttings 

14  Public  meetings  to  consider  the  above 


32 


APPENDIX 

EXHIBIT  A 

1890 

1900        1910 

1912 

1913 

1914 

1915 

Enumeration 

750 

712          801 

885 

876 

904 

996 

Registration 

697 

602         628 

599 

690 

723 

734 

Ave  attendance 

390.9 

401.3       461.9 

461.2 

508 

535.7 

559 

Population 
1800  2766 
1850  2633 
1890  2890 
1900  3158 
1910        3362 


33 


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34 


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